Thin film forming apparatus, film supplier, film cassette, transport mechanism and transport method

ABSTRACT

A center robot is fixed approximately in a central portion of a process part. A coating unit, a drying unit, a transfer unit, a peeling unit, a film supplying unit and a reversing unit are arranged around the center robot. The center robot comprises a hand-for-substrate and a hand-for-film which are allowed to directly access the respective units. Within a process part, the center robot transports a sheet film and/or a substrate between the coating unit, the drying unit, the transfer unit and the film supplying unit, and a thin film is formed on the substrate using the sheet film.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a thin film forming apparatus forforming a thin film on a substrate using a sheet film, and a filmsupplying mechanism, a film cassette, a transportation mechanism and atransportation method which can be used in such an apparatus.

2. Description of the Related Art

Over the recent years, it has became necessary to use a thin filmforming method suitably applicable to a large area size as wafers usedduring manufacturing of LSIs have became larger in diameter, liquidcrystal panels have became larger in area size, etc. In addition, in thefield of multilevel interconnection techniques among techniques formanufacturing LSIs, the surface of an insulation film needs beplanarized accurately to realize multilevel interconnections. Hence,there are increasing demands for larger area sizes and better surfaceplanarization techniques for planarization of surfaces duringfabrication of thin films. In an effort to meet these demands, thin filmforming techniques for forming a thin film on a substrate by a pressuretransfer method have been proposed.

This type of thin film forming apparatus may be an apparatus which isdescribed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Gazette No.2001-135634 for instance. In this apparatus, a thin film is disposed ona substrate in accordance with thin film forming steps that are shown inFIGS. 18A through 18D. First, as shown in FIG. 18A, a substrate W, suchas a semiconductor wafer and a glass substrate for liquid crystal panel,is placed on a specimen holder in such a manner that electrodeinterconnections 111 formed on a surface of the substrate W directthemselves toward above. In this example, the surface 112 seating theelectrode interconnections 111 serves as a thin film bearing surface onwhich a thin film is to be disposed through steps described below.

Next, as shown in FIG. 18B, a sheet film F whose surface already seatsan insulation film 121 is mounted to a transfer plate which is locatedabove the specimen holder to face the specimen holder. In this example,the insulation film 121 is the thin film that is to be transferred ontothe substrate W. The insulation film 121 is located so as to face thethin film bearing surface 112 of the substrate W that is placed on thespecimen holder. The specimen holder is moved toward the transfer plateand the substrate W and the sheet film F are accordingly brought intocontact with each other. Thereafter, the substrate W and the sheet filmF are pressed against each other as denoted at the arrows in FIG. 18Bfor a certain period of time while heating the substrate W to apredetermined temperature. As a result, the substrate W and the sheetfilm F tightly adhere to each other with the insulation film 121inserted between the two, and a tightly adhered object is obtained.

The tightly adhered object is taken out from a thin film forming chamberand the sheet film F is peeled off as shown in FIG. 18C, whereby thesubstrate W which seats the insulation film 121 as that shown in FIG.18D is obtained.

By the way, for the purpose of forming a thin film using the apparatusdescribed above, it is necessary to retrieve a pre-transfer substrateout from a substrate cassette and place the same on a specimen holder.The other hand, it is necessary to retrieve an unused sheet film F outfrom a film cassette and apply a surface of the sheet film F with theinsulation film 121 using a coating apparatus. Furthermore, the film Fwith the insulation film 121 is placed on a transfer stage of the thinfilm forming apparatus. It is also necessary, after transfer, toretrieve the tightly adhered object bearing the transferred thin film(which is obtained by joining the substrate W and the sheet film Fthrough the insulation film 121) out from the thin film formingapparatus, and thereafter peel off only the sheet film F from thetightly adhered object using a peeling apparatus of the thin filmforming apparatus. The sheet film F and/or the substrate W are thustransported between the respective apparatuses. The transportation ofthe sheet film F, the substrate W and the like is performed manually byan operator according to conventional techniques. Hence, the processingefficiency is poor, which serves as one of major causes of deteriorationin throughput. This has gave rise to a strong demand for efficientlysupplying of sheet films, a handling (holding/transporting) technique.

Further, once human operators handle transportation of sheet films,particles may adhere to the sheet films or heat may dissipate from thesheet films. This makes it difficult to control heat histories and leadsto deterioration in product quality of thin films and even a drop inproduction yield, which is a problem. There is another problem that alarge floor space is necessary to install the apparatus. While automatedtransportation of sheet films is indispensable to solve these problems,there has been no handling technique that is suitable to suchautomation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in light of these problems. A firstobject of the present invention therefore is to provide a thin filmforming apparatus that is compact and makes it possible to efficientlyform a thin film on a substrate using a sheet film.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a film supplierand a film cassette that, in a thin film forming apparatus for forming athin film on a substrate using a sheet film, realizes efficientsupplying of a sheet film without involving an operator.

A third object of the present invention is to provide a transportmechanism and a transportation method that, in a thin film formingapparatus for forming a thin film on a substrate using a sheet film,realizes efficient transportation of a sheet film.

The present invention is directed to an apparatus for forming a thinfilm on a substrate using a sheet film. To achieve the first objectdescribed above, the apparatus comprises: film supplying means whichsupplies a sheet film; coating means which applies a thin film coatingliquid upon a surface of the sheet film supplied from the film supplyingmeans and coats a thin film; transfer means which tightly joins thesheet film now bearing the thin film and a substrate to each other,accordingly generates a tightly adhered object and transfers the thinfilm onto the substrate; peeling means which peels off the sheet filmfrom the tightly adhered object; and transporting means which transportsthe sheet film and/or the substrate between the film supplying means,the coating means, the transfer means and the peeling means.

According to the present invention which uses such a structure, the thinfilm is formed on the substrate using the sheet film while thetransporting means transports the sheet film and/or the substratebetween the coating means, the transfer means and the peeling means. Inother words, the sheet film is transported to the coating means, thethin film is formed on the surface of the sheet film, and the sheet filmis transported to the transfer means. In addition to the sheet film, thesubstrate is also transported to the transfer means, and the sheet filmis transferred onto the substrate. At last, the peeling means peels offthe sheet film, thereby completing the generation of the thin film onthe substrate. In this manner, the present invention permits to form thethin film using the sheet film without involving an operator. Inaddition, according to the present invention, since the sheet film issupplied directly to the process part, it is possible to enhance theefficiency of transporting the sheet films and improve the throughput.

The present invention is directed to a film supplier which suppliessheet films within a thin film forming apparatus which forms thin filmson substrates using the sheet films. To achieve the second object above,the film supplier comprises: a film cassette in which the sheet filmsare housed in such a manner that a separating sheet is inserted betweenthe sheet films; and separating sheet removing means which removes theseparating sheet located at the very top in the film cassette out fromthe film cassette, to thereby position the sheet film at the very top inthe film cassette.

According to the present invention that uses such a structure, in thefilm cassette, the sheet films are housed in such a manner that aseparating sheet is inserted between the sheet films. As the separatingsheet comes to the very top in the film cassette, contamination of thesheet films is effectively prevented. When the separating sheet removingmeans removes the top-most separating sheet from the film cassette, thesheet film comes to the very top in the film cassette, and it becomespossible to unload the sheet film from the film cassette. In thismanner, the sheet film is supplied in accordance with the necessitywithout involving an operator. The sheet films are thus efficientlysupplied.

The present invention is directed to a film cassette which houses asheet film which is used in a thin film forming apparatus which forms athin film on a substrate. To achieve the second object above, the filmcassette comprises: a cassette main body which is capable of housing aplurality of sheet films in such a manner that a separating sheet isinserted between the sheet films; and a positioning member which fitswith peripheral portions of the sheet films and the separating sheethoused in the cassette main body to thereby position the sheet films andthe separating sheet relative to the cassette main body.

In the film cassette having such a structure, the plurality of sheetfilms are housed in such a manner that the separating sheet is insertedbetween the sheet films. The positioning member positions the sheetfilms and the separating sheets relative to the cassette main part,which makes it possible to unload the sheet films from and supply thesheet films to the cassette main part without fail.

The present invention is also directed to a transport mechanism thattransports a sheet film that is used in a thin film forming apparatuswhich forms a thin film using the sheet film. To achieve the thirdobject above, the transport mechanism comprises: a hand-for-film whichcomprises a suction hole in an abutting area where the hand-for-filmabuts on the sheet film; a blower which is linked to the suction holevia an inner space created inside the hand-for-film and which evacuatesthe inside of the inner space so that the hand-for-film sucks andaccordingly holds the sheet film; and a driver-for-film which moves thehand-for-film in a condition that the blower makes the hand-for-filmsucks and accordingly holds the sheet film, to thereby transport thesheet film.

According to the present invention that uses such a structure, as theblower evacuates the inner space, the sheet film is sucked andaccordingly held at the suction hole of the hand-for-film. The sheetfilm is transported as it is thus sucked and accordingly held. In thismanner, since the suction holding is realized by means of the blowerevacuation, that is, since the exhaust flow rate is increased and anegative pressure is applied upon the suction hole, even if there is aleakage locally in the exhaust path from the suction hole to the blower,it is possible to develop a sufficient negative pressure to suck andaccordingly hold the sheet film although the negative pressure decreasesin an amount equivalent to the leakage. While a conventional method isavailable according to which vacuum suction is achieved by applicationof a negative pressure upon a suction hole by means of vacuum suctionmeans, such as a vacuum pump and an aspirator, which serves as suctionholding means, if there is a leakage locally in the exhaust path, anegative pressure is not applied upon the suction hole and vacuumsuction of even the sheet film becomes impossible. Thus, suction holdingby blower evacuation is proper to suck and hold the sheet film which islight very much as compared with the substrate. A transport mechanismusing this structure can transport the sheet films with excellentstability, and hence, transport the sheet films efficiently.

The present invention is further directed to a transport mechanism thattransports a substrate while holding the substrate. To achieve the thirdobject above, the transport mechanism comprises: a hand main body; anupper side holding mechanism which holds the substrate on the topsurface side of the hand main body; a lower side holding mechanism whichholds the substrate on the bottom surface side of the hand main body;and a driver-for-substrate which moves the hand main body so as totransport the substrate.

According to the present invention which uses such a structure, thetransport mechanism can transport the substrate while holding thesubstrate in the two holding conditions, switch the holding conditiondepending on the state of the substrate. The transport mechanismtherefore can be adaptable to the states of the substrates andefficiently transport the substrates.

The present invention is further directed to a method of transporting asubstrate by means of a transport mechanism that comprises a hand mainbody. To achieve the third object above, the transporting methodcomprises a first transportation mode, in which a substrate istransported while held on the top surface side of the hand main body;and a second transportation mode, the substrate is transported whileheld on the bottom surface side of the hand main body. And the substrateis transported in either one of the first transportation mode and thesecond transportation mode in accordance with the state of thesubstrate. Hence, it is possible to switch the holding conditiondepending on the state of the substrate, which realizes adaptation tothe states of the substrates and efficient transportation of thesubstrates.

The above and further objects and novel features of the invention willmore fully appear from the following detailed description when the sameis read in connection with the accompanying drawing. It is to beexpressly understood, however, that the drawing is for purpose ofillustration only and is not intended as a definition of the limits ofthe invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a layout drawing which shows a preferred embodiment of a thinfilm forming apparatus according to the present invention;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams which show a center robot;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are drawings which show a structure of ahand-for-substrate which forms the center robot shown in FIGS. 2A and2B;

FIGS. 4A and 4B are drawings which show a structure of a hand-for-filmwhich forms the center robot shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B;

FIG. 5 is a drawing which shows a structure of a film supplying unitwhich is disposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a perspective deal/assembly drawing of a film cassette whichis disposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a perspective drawing of a separating sheet removing mechanismwhich is disposed to the film supplying unit shown in FIG. 5;

FIGS. 8A through 8C are diagrams which show operations of the filmsupplying unit shown in FIG. 5;

FIGS. 9A and 9B are diagrams which show operations of the film supplyingunit shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 10 is a drawing which shows a structure of a coating unit which isdisposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a drawing which shows a drying unit which is disposed to thethin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a schematic cross sectional view of a transfer unit which isdisposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is a cross sectional view of FIG. 12 taken along the C-C line;

FIG. 14 is a partially notched perspective view of a tilt correctionmechanism that is disposed to the transfer unit shown in FIG. 12;

FIG. 15 is a drawing which shows a peeling unit which is disposed to thethin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIGS. 16A and 16B are drawings which show a structure of a reversingunit which is disposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG.1;

FIG. 17 is a drawing which shows overall operations of the thin filmforming apparatus shown in FIG. 1; and

FIGS. 18A through 18D are drawing which shows the sequence of forming athin film in a conventional thin film forming apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

A. Layout of the Apparatus

FIG. 1 is a layout drawing which shows a preferred embodiment of a thinfilm forming apparatus according to the present invention. In this thinfilm forming apparatus, as shown in FIG. 1, there are an indexer IDdisposed on stage left (the left-hand side in FIG. 1) and a process partPP, which forms a thin film on a substrate using a sheet film, disposedon stage right (the right-hand side in FIG. 1) as viewed from theindexer ID.

In the indexer ID, four substrate cassettes 11 in which substrates arehoused are arranged in one line along an X-direction. A substratetransporting robot 12, which is customarily in a frequent use, movesalong the direction of arrangement X. The robot 12 unloads a substratethat does not yet seat a thin film and housed in one of the substratecassettes 11 and transports the substrate to the process part PP. Therobot 12 also receives a substrate now seating a thin film from theprocess part PP and houses the substrate back in the substrate cassette11. For convenience of description, each drawing herein referred toshows an orthogonal coordinate system XYZ in which a “Y-direction” is adirection which is perpendicular to a vertical direction Z and thedirection of arrangement X of the substrate cassettes 11.

In the process part PP which is positioned on the (+Y)-side to theindexer ID, a coating unit 3, drying units 4, transfer units 5, apeeling unit 6, a film supplying unit 7 and a reversing unit 8 aredisposed around the center robot 2. This embodiment uses two transferunits 5, for the purpose of parallel transfer by means of the transferunits 5. Further, in order to reverse a substrate received from theindexer ID by the reversing unit 8 and transport the substrate to eitherone of the transfer units 5 as described later, the transfer units 5 andthe reversing unit 8 are disposed along the X-direction in an area ofthe process part PP adjacent to the indexer ID, with the reversing unit8 inserted between the two transfer units 5. The drying units 4 aredisposed over the transfer units 5, thereby reducing the footprint ofthe apparatus. Further, within the process part PP, on the opposite sideto the indexer ID, the coating unit 3 and the peeling unit 6 arearranged. The film supplying unit 7 for supplying a sheet film isinserted between the coating unit 3 and one transfer unit 5. In thismanner, the units 3 through 8 are radially arranged about the centerrobot 2 in the process part PP. As described in the following, thecenter robot 2 extends or contracts hands while fixed approximately atthe center of the process part PP. On extending or contracting ahand-for-substrate, the center robot 2 transports a substrate betweenthe transfer units 5, the peeling unit 6 and the reversing unit 8. Onextending or contracting a hand-for-film, the center robot 2 transportsa sheet film between the coating unit 3, the drying units 4, thetransfer units 5 and the film supplying unit 7.

B. Center Robot (Transport Mechanism) 2

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams which show the center robot, of which FIG.2A is a plan view from above and FIG. 2B is a side view. The centerrobot 2 is a polyarticular robot which corresponds to a transportmechanism according to the present invention. The robot 2 comprises arobot main body 21 and two polyarticular arms 22 and 23 which areattached to a top portion of the robot main body 21. The robot main body21, being fixed in a central portion of the process part PP, rotatesabout a rotation axis AX1. Further, the robot main body 21 is capable offreely extending and contracting along the Z-direction.

A hand-for-substrate 24, which functions as a substrate holder forholding the substrate W, is disposed to a front edge of thepolyarticular arm 22. Driving for extending and contracting thepolyarticular arm 22 is controlled in accordance with an operationinstruction from a control unit (denoted at 9 in FIG. 12 which will bedescribed later) which controls the apparatus as a whole. Driving forrotations of the robot main body 21 about the rotation axis AX1 alongthe Z-direction is also controlled in accordance with an operationinstruction from a control unit. By controlling the operation of therobot main body 21 and the polyarticular arm 22, the hand-for-substrate24 unloads the substrate W from the respective units 5, 6 and 8 or loadsthe substrate W held by the hand-for-substrate 24 to the respectiveunits 5, 6 and 8. Thus, in this embodiment, the robot main body 21 andthe polyarticular arm 22 function as a driver-for-substrate which movesthe hand-for-substrate 24, which corresponds to the“holder-for-substrate” of the present invention, to thereby transportthe substrate W.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are drawings which show a structure of thehand-for-substrate, of which FIG. 3A is a plan view showing thehand-for-substrate from above and FIG. 3B is a cross sectional view ofFIG. 3A taken along the A-A line. The hand-for-substrate 24 comprises ahand main body 243 which is obtained by setting two plates 241 and 242one atop the other, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. There are wings 244,which extend in a direction which is approximately perpendicular to thelongitudinal direction of the hand main body 243, disposed in a frontedge portion and a central portion of the hand main body 243. Substratesupporting blocks 245 are fixed in top surface portions of the wings244. As denoted at the double-dot line in FIGS. 3A and 3B, when thesubstrate W is fit with the substrate supporting blocks 245 on an outerside surface of the substrate W, the substrate W is mechanically held onthe top surface side of the hand main body 243. Thus, in thisembodiment, the substrate supporting blocks 245 function as an “upperside holding mechanism” of the present invention.

Three suction holes 246 through 248 are formed in a central portion ofthe bottom plate 242, while a groove portion 249 is formed on the bottomsurface side of the top plate 241. When the top and the bottom plates241 and 242 are integrated with each other, the groove portion 249 linksthe three suction holes 246 through 248 to each other. The grooveportion 249 is connected with a vacuum suction mechanism not shown suchas a vacuum pump. When the vacuum suction mechanism is activated, anegative pressure is applied upon the groove portion 249, whereby thesubstrate W is held by suction on the bottom surface side of the handmain body 243 as denoted at the dotted line in FIG. 3B. Thus, in thisembodiment, the suction holes 246 through 248, the groove portion 249 ofthe hand main body 243 and the vacuum suction mechanism function as a“lower side holding mechanism” of the present invention.

As described above, in this embodiment, it is possible to transport thesubstrate W while holding the substrate mechanically on the upper sideor holding the substrate by suction on the lower side, adapt to thestate of the substrate and efficiently transport the substrate. Further,it is possible to transport the two substrates W at the same time.

The hand-for-film 25, which holds the sheet film F by suction at asurface peripheral portion of the sheet film F, is attached to a frontedge portion of the other polyarticular arm 23. Driving for extendingand contracting the polyarticular arm 23 is controlled in accordancewith an operation instruction from the control unit. By controlling theoperation of the robot main body 21 and the polyarticular arm 23, thesheet film F is unloaded from the respective units 3 through 5 and 7 orthe sheet film F held by the hand-for-film 25 is loaded to therespective units 3 through 5. Thus, in this embodiment, the robot mainbody 21 and the polyarticular arm 23 function as a driver-for-film whichmoves the hand-for-film 25, which corresponds to the “film holder” ofthe present invention, to thereby transport the sheet film F.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are drawings which show a structure of thehand-for-film, of which FIG. 4A is a bottom view of the hand-for-film asviewed from below and FIG. 4B is a cross sectional view of FIG. 4A takenalong the B-B line. In the hand-for-film 25, a ring member 252, whoseouter diameter is approximately the same as that of the sheet film F, isattached to a front edge portion on the bottom surface of a hand mainbody 251 while a plate member 253, whose shape is approximately the sameas that of the sheet film F, is attached to the bottom surface side ofthe ring member 252, whereby the hand main body 251 and the ring member252 form an inner space 254. In order to strengthen central portions ofthe hand main body 251 and the plate member 253, six supporting members255 are disposed in the inner space 254.

In a peripheral edge portion of the plate member 253, there are 18through holes 253 a. A ring plate 257, whose outer diameter isapproximately the same as that of the sheet film F, is attached to theplate member 253 through a packing sheet 256 which is of rubber, a resinor the like. In the packing sheet 256, there are through holes 256 aformed in such a manner that the through holes 256 a correspond one eachto each through hole 253 a of the plate member 253. In the ring plate257, there are six suction holes 257 a over three through holes 253 a insuch a manner that the suction holes 257 a correspond one each to threethrough holes 253 a. Thus, via the suction holes 257 a and the throughholes 256 a and 253 a, the bottom surface side of the ring plate 257 andthe inner space 254 are linked to each other.

A communicating hole 251 a is formed in the top surface of the hand mainbody 251 and connected to an exhaust blower (not shown) through anexhaust duct 258, as shown in FIG. 4B. A negative pressure is appliedupon the inner space 254 as the exhaust blower operates, and as shown inFIG. 4B, as the entire bottom surface of the ring plate 257 serves as an“abutting area” of the present invention and abuts on a surfaceperipheral portion of the sheet film F, the sheet film F is sucked atthe surface peripheral portion of the sheet film F and accordingly held.

C. Film Supplying Unit (Film Supplier) 7 and Film Cassette 71

FIG. 5 is a drawing which shows a structure of the film supplying unitwhich is disposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. Inthis film supplying unit 7, a film cassette 71 in which the sheet filmsF are housed is freely attachable to and detachable from a cassetteseater 72. The cassette seater 72 is moved upward and downward in thevertical direction Z by an elevating mechanism not shown, therebypositioning the film cassette 71 mounted to the cassette seater 72 inthe vertical direction Z. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, thereare three cassette seaters 72, which allows to mount maximum of threefilm cassettes 71 at the same time. The number of the cassette seaters72 is not limited to “three” but may be any desired number.

FIG. 6 is a perspective deal/assembly drawing of the film cassette whichis disposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. Eachfilm cassette 71 is capable of housing a plurality of sheet films F intoa cassette main body 711, with a separating sheet SH inserted betweenthe sheet films F. Three positioning pins 712 are disposed upright tothe cassette main body 711. The positioning pins 712 fit with peripheralportions of the sheet films F and the separating sheets SH which arehoused in the cassette main body 711, whereby the sheet films F and theseparating sheets SH are positioned relative to the cassette main body711. Hence, inside the cassette main body 711, the sheet films F and theseparating sheets SH are always housed as they are aligned, which inturn permits to execute unloading of the sheet films F, removal of theseparating sheets SH and other processing which will be described latereach in an excellent manner.

A protection cover 713 is disposed to the cassette main body 711 in sucha manner that the protection cover 713 can freely open and close.Describing in more detail, projections 714 are attached to theprotection cover 713 at four positions in a bottom edge peripheralportion of the protection cover 713, and insertion holes 715 are formedin the cassette main body 711 to correspond to the respectiveprojections 714. When the protection cover 713 is mounted to thecassette main body 711 while inserting each projection 714 into eachcorresponding insertion hole 715, the protection cover 713 is closed,thereby covering the sheet films F and the separating sheets SH whichare housed in the cassette main body 711 from above and accordinglyprotecting the sheet films F and the separating sheets SH. This preventscontamination of the sheet films F without fail. On the other hand, asthe protection cover 713 is moved toward above away from the cassettemain body 711, the protection cover 713 is opened, thereby allowing tounload the sheet films F and the separating sheets SH which are housedin the cassette main body 711 from above.

In order to move the protection cover 713 to open and close theprotection cover 713, in the film supplying unit 7 according to theembodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, a cover open/close driving mechanism 73is disposed at a position above the cassette seaters 72. The coveropen/close driving mechanism 73 comprises a revolving arm 731 which canfreely revolve about a revolution axis AX2 and a grip 732 which isattached to a front edge of the revolving arm 731. Driven by a drivernot shown, the revolving arm 731 revolves along the direction denoted atthe dotted line arrow P1. After the grip 732 grasps a handle 716 whichis disposed to the protection cover 713 for the film cassettes 71positioned at predetermined cover open/close positions (FIG. 8A), thecover open/close driving mechanism 73 causes the revolving arm 731 torevolve along the (−P1)-direction and move to a retracted position whichis shown in FIG. 5. An operation opposite to this is performed to closethe protection cover 713.

At a position below the cover open/close driving mechanism 73, aseparating sheet removing mechanism 74 is disposed to remove theseparating sheets SH. In the separating sheet removing mechanism 74, asshown in FIGS. 5 and 7, two revolving arms 741 and 742 are disposed witha gap between the two. The gap is wider than the outer diameter of thesheet films F and the separating sheets SH. Further, there is acommunicating beam 743 which extends in the horizontal direction,disposed to top portions of the revolving arms 741 and 742. A suctionplate 744 for sucking the separating sheets SH is attached to a centralportion of the communicating beam 743, and as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7,the bottom surface of the suction plate 744 serves as a suction surface744 a at a suction position. As the cassette seater 72 is moved upwardwhile the suction surface 744 a is directed to the (−Z)-direction asshown in FIG. 8B, the top-most separating sheet SH in the film cassette71 set to the cassette seater 72 abuts on the suction surface 744 a andis sucked and accordingly held by the suction plate 744 as shown in FIG.8C. The distances between the film cassettes 71 set to the cassetteseaters 72 are long enough for the protection cover 713 to move passedduring attachment or detachment of the protection cover 713 by the coveropen/close driving mechanism 73.

Axial members 745 and 746 extending in the (+Y)-direction and the(−Y)-direction, respectively, are attached respectively to the revolvingarms 741 and 742 and can freely revolve about a revolution axis AX3, asshown in FIG. 7. Driven by a driver not shown, the revolving arms 741and 742 revolve along the direction denoted at the dotted line arrow P2.Hence, after the suction plate 744 sucks and accordingly holds theseparating sheet SH as described above, when the revolving arms 741 and742 revolve along the direction (+P2) denoted at the arrow as shown inFIG. 9A, the suction plate 744 is positioned to a removal position. Whenthe suction by the suction plate 744 is released, the separating sheetSH drops toward below from the suction plate 744.

In this embodiment, a separating sheet collection box 76 for collectingthe separating sheets SH is disposed to a bottom surface portion of thefilm supplying unit 7. Guide members 77 and 78 are disposed which guidethe separating sheet SH dropping as described above into the separatingsheet collection box 76. Thus, the separating sheet collection box 76and the guide members 77 and 78 constitute a “separating sheetcollection means” of the present invention, and it is possible tocollect the separating sheets SH into the separating sheet collectionbox 76 without fail. This effectively prevents the separating sheets SHfrom scattering around the film supplying unit 7.

On the other hand, with the separating sheet SH removed from the filmcassette 71, the sheet film F is exposed in the top-most portion andtherefore can be unloaded from the film cassette 71. The hand-for-film25 moves to the film supplying unit 7 at appropriate timing, and sucksand accordingly holds the top-most sheet film F (FIG. 9B). The sheetfilm F is then transported to the next processing unit, namely, thecoating unit 3.

According to this embodiment, an ionizer 79 is disposed in the vicinityof the separating sheet removing mechanism 74 as shown in FIG. 5 whicheffectively prevents development of peeling-inducing electrificationduring unloading of the sheet films F and removal of the separatingsheets SH from the film cassettes 71.

D. Coating Unit 3

FIG. 10 is a drawing which shows a structure of the coating unit whichis disposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. Thecoating unit 3 comprises: a disk-shaped stage 31; a rotation axis 32 ofa motor (not shown) which rotates the stage 31; an SOG (Spin-on-Glass)liquid exhaust nozzle 33 which applies a thin film coating liquid suchas an SOG liquid; a cleaning liquid exhaust nozzle 34 which discharges acleaning liquid toward peripheral portions of the sheet films F for edgerinsing; and a splashing preventing cup 35 which prevents splashing ofthe coating liquid, the cleaning liquid and the like around the coatingunit 3.

A plurality of suction holes not shown are formed in the entire topsurface of the stage 31 and connected with a vacuum pump (not shown).After the sheet film F is transported by the hand-for-film 25 from thefilm supplying unit 7 to the coating unit 3 and placed on the stage 31in the manner described above, the vacuum pump operates, whereby thesheet film F is firmly vacuum-sucked to the stage 31. The splashingpreventing cup 35 surrounds the stage 31 which has such a structure.

In the coating unit 3 which has such a structure, as the sheet film F isset to the stage 31 and preparation for coating completes, a motor (notshown) disposed in the coating unit 3 operates and the rotation axis 32starts rotating as shown in FIG. 10. The rotations make the stage 31 andhence the sheet film F rotates about a rotation axis AX4. At the sametime as or in a slight delay from the rotations, the SOG liquid exhaustnozzle 33 supplies the SOG liquid toward the center point of the sheetfilm F. Because of centrifugal force developed by the rotations of thesheet film F, the SOG liquid spreads as a thin film from the centerpoint of the sheet film F over the entire surface. At this stage, theSOG liquid splashing beyond the sheet film F is discharged to outsidethe coating unit 3 through the splashing preventing cup 35 and furtherthrough a discharge duct not shown.

After the SOG liquid is supplied to the entire surface of the sheet filmF, edge rinsing is performed. That is, the cleaning liquid is expelledtoward the peripheral portion of the sheet film F from the cleaningliquid exhaust nozzle 34. Since the sheet film F is still rotating, thecoating liquid adhering to the peripheral portion of the sheet film F isremoved owing to the rotations.

As the coating of the sheet film F completes in this manner, thehand-for-film 25 enters the coating unit 3 and sucks to hold the sheetfilm F While the vacuum pump stops and the vacuum suction by the stage31 is released. The hand-for-film 25 unloads the sheet film F nowseating an SOG film (thin film) from the coating unit 3, and transportsthe sheet film F to the next processing unit, namely, the drying unit 4.

While the SOG liquid is used as the coating liquid in the coating unit 3according to this embodiment, the coating liquid is not limitedparticularly to any but may be a coating liquid which forms a thin filmwhich is to be disposed on the substrate W, such as a photoresist liquidor the like used for lithographic processing of semiconductors. Inaddition, although the sheet film F is transported to the drying unit 4which will be described next and drying is performed after the coatingprocess in this embodiment, the sheet film F is transported directly tothe transfer unit 5 without performing the drying process.

E. Drying Unit 4

FIG. 11 is a drawing which shows the drying unit which is disposed tothe thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. The drying unit 4comprises: a processing container 41 whose inside is a processingchamber 411; and a hot plate (stage) 42 which is disposed in an innerbottom portion of the processing chamber 411. Denoted at 121 in FIG. 11is the SOG film (thin film) which is formed on the surface of the sheetfilm F by the coating unit 3 described above.

There are two nitrogen gas inlets 412 and 413 disposed in a bottomportion of the processing container 41, and a nitrogen gas (N2 gas) issupplied into the processing chamber 411 through the inlets 412 and 413from a nitrogen gas supply source not shown. An exhaust vent 414 isdisposed to a ceiling portion of the processing chamber 411, so that itis possible to discharge gas components within the processing chamber411 from the processing chamber 411. Hence, the processing chamber 411is filled with a nitrogen gas atmosphere in which the drying processwill be carried out.

The hot plate 42 incorporates a heater 421, and the heater 421 developsheat in response to an electric signal which is fed from the controlunit. A plurality of suction holes not shown are formed in the entiretop surface of the hot plate 42 and connected with a vacuum pump (notshown), which is similar to the stage 31 of the coating unit 3. Asdescribed earlier, after the sheet film F is transported by thehand-for-film 25 to the drying unit 4 and placed on the hot plate 42,the vacuum pump operates, whereby the sheet film F is firmlyvacuum-sucked to the hot plate 42. The drying process is initiated, withthe sheet film F vacuum-sucked to the hot plate 42.

As the sheet film F is heated for a predetermined period of time and thedrying process completes, the hand-for-film 25 enters the drying unit 4and sucks to hold the sheet film F. While the vacuum pump stops and thevacuum suction by the hot plate 42 is released. The hand-for-film 25unloads the sheet film F thus dried from the drying unit 4, andtransports the sheet film F to the next processing unit, namely, thetransfer unit 5.

F. Transfer Unit 5

FIG. 12 is a schematic cross sectional view of the transfer unit whichis disposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. In FIG.12, it is possible to vacuum-exhaust the inside of the transfer unit 5,and the transfer unit 5 comprises a processing container 51 whichdefines a chamber 511 in which the SOG film (thin film) is transferred.An exhaust vent 512 is disposed in a side surface portion of theprocessing container 51, and a vacuum pump 52 is connected with theexhaust vent 512. The vacuum pump 52, being electrically connected witha control unit 9 which controls the apparatus as a whole, is capable ofoperating in accordance with an operation instruction from the controlunit 9 and accordingly vacuum-exhausting the inside of the chamber 511through the exhaust vent 512.

Disposed inside the chamber 511 are a first and a second plates 54 and55, and a mechanism (hereinafter referred to as “tilt correctionmechanism”) 58. The tilt correction mechanism 58 automatically correctstilting of the first plate 54 with respect to the second plate 55. Thetilt correction guarantees equi-pressure pressing of the substrate W atthe entire surfaces of the substrate W and the SOG film which is formedon the sheet film F.

The first plate 54 is hung above the second plate 55 via the tiltcorrection mechanism 58 in such a manner that the axes of the platesmatch with each other. As the substrate W is mounted to a surface(bottom surface) of the first plate 54 faced with the second plate 55,the first plate 54 serves as a plate-for-substrate. Hence, a quartzplate (not shown) polished for the evenness is disposed to the bottomsurface of the first plate 54 and the substrate W is fixed to the quartzplate. The reason of using the quartz plate is because quartz isexcellent as a material to which the substrate W is mounted owing toproperties of quartz that quartz does not contain a substance whichcontaminates the substrates W, the workability of quartz is favorableand therefore a necessary level of evenness is easily obtained, etc. Thefirst plate 54 comprises a heater 541 as heating means inside the firstplate 54. The heater 541 is electrically connected with a heatercontroller 542. Controlled by the heater controller 542 which operatesbased on substrate temperature information received from the controlunit 9, the heater 541 heats between 25 through 300° C.

Another plate, namely the second plate 55, is disposed below the firstplate 54, and as the sheet film F is mounted to the top surface of thesecond plate 55, the second plate 55 serves as a plate-for-film.Further, the second plate 55 comprises a quartz stage on which the sheetfilm F is placed and a heating stage which heats up the sheet film F. Aheater 551 is incorporated as heating means inside the heating stage.The heater 551 is electrically connected with a heater controller 552.Controlled by the heater controller 552 which operates based onsubstrate temperature information received from the control unit 9, theheater 552 heats between 25 through 300° C. An axis 553 is integratedwith the bottom surface center of the heating stage in such a mannerthat the axis 553 is upright with respect to the bottom surface centerof the heating stage. The axis 553 is axially supported by a bearing 591for free vertical movements and vertically moved along the travelingdirection Z by a load motor 592 which serves as a load mechanism.

A structure of the tilt correction mechanism 58 will now be described indetail with reference to FIGS. 12 through 14. FIG. 13 is a crosssectional view of FIG. 12 taken along the C-C line. FIG. 14 is apartially notched perspective view of the tilt correction mechanism. Inthis embodiment, the tilt correction mechanism 58 is disposed as if tosurround the periphery of the first plate 54. The tilt correctionmechanism 58 comprises a ring-shaped first supporting member 582 and asecond supporting member 584. The first supporting member 582 is linkedto the first plate 54 through a first axial member 581 extending in afirst direction X approximately perpendicular to the traveling directionZ. And the first supporting member 582 supports the first plate 54 forfree revolutions about a first revolution axis AX5. Another supportingmember 584 is disposed around the first supporting member 582 and linkedto the first supporting member 582 through a second axial member 583extending in a second direction Y approximately perpendicular to thetraveling direction Z and the first direction X. And the secondsupporting member 584 supports the first supporting member 582 for freerevolutions about a second revolution axis AX6. In this embodiment, asshown in FIG. 14, the respective axial members 581 and 583 are disposedso as to position the first and the second revolution axes AX5 and AX6within the surface of the substrate W which is mounted to the firstplate 54, that is, within the plane of the thin film bearing surface112.

In the tilt correction mechanism 58 having such a structure, the firstplate 54 is supported for free revolutions about the first revolutionaxis AX5 while the second plate 55 is supported for free revolutionsabout the second revolution axis AX6, and the first plate 54, whenaxially revolving, can tilt with respect to the traveling direction Z.

Further, as shown in FIG. 14, the second supporting member 584 of thetilt correction mechanism 58 comprises two columns 584 a and 584 b and abeam 584 c. The two columns 584 a and 584 b extend in the direction Z asif to sandwich the first supporting member 582 in the Y-direction. Thebeam 584 c links upper portions of the columns 584 a and 584 b to eachother. A pole 584 d extends toward above from a central portion of thebeam 584 c, and is hung within the chamber 511. More particularly, thepole 584 d is pivotally supported by a bearing 593 for free verticalmovements, and a flange 594 which prevents dropping toward below isintegrated with and protrudes from a top edge of the pole 584 d. Denotedat 595 in FIG. 12 is a load sensor which is disposed to correspond tothe flange 594. The sensor 595 detects a load applied between thesubstrate W and the sheet film F and supplies a load value to thecontrol unit 9.

The sequence of transfer using the transfer unit 5 described above willnow be described. In this embodiment, the substrate W is transported tothe transfer unit 5 from the reversing unit 8 which will be describedlater. Among transporting the substrate W, it is with the thin filmbearing surface 112 (a surface in which electrode interconnections andthe like are formed and on which the thin film is to be formed) directedtoward below and it is mechanically held by the substrate supportingblocks 245 of the hand-for-substrate 24. Furthermore, the substrate W ismounted to the bottom surface of the first plate 54 with the thin filmbearing surface 112 thereof directed to below. The sheet film F, onwhich surface the SOG film 121 (FIG. 11) is formed by the coating unit 3in advance, is mounted on the second plate 55 with the SOG film 121directed to above. The control unit 9 controls the respective portionsof the apparatus in the manner described below, whereby the thin film onthe substrate W is transferred onto the substrate W.

First, the heater controller 542 energizes the heater 541, therebyheating the first plate 54 and accordingly heating the substrate W to adesired temperature. Meanwhile, the heater controller 552 energizes theheater 551, thereby heating the second plate 55 and accordingly heatingthe sheet film F to a desired temperature.

Further, the vacuum pump 52 vacuum-evacuates the chamber 511 to adesired level of vacuum. After the inside of the chamber 511 reaches thedesired level of vacuum, the control unit 9 sends a drive signal to theload motor 592 and starts loading. Hence, the second plate 55 movesupward along the traveling direction Z and pushes the sheet film Fagainst the substrate W. At this stage, the first plate 54 and the tiltcorrection mechanism 58 are pushed upward as one unit by the secondplate 55.

During the pushing proceeds, when the first plate 54 tilts with respectto the second plate 55, as the second plate 55 abuts on the first plate54, the tilt correction mechanism 58 automatically corrects the tilt ofthe first plate 54. In other words, since the first plate 54 is held bythe tilt correction mechanism 58 in such a manner that the first plate54 can tilt with respect to the traveling direction Z, assuming that thefirst plate 54 is at a small angle toward the left-hand side in FIG. 12for instance, the left-hand edge side of the second plate 55 firstcontacts the first plate 54 and pushes up the first plate 54. Hence, thefirst plate 54 revolves clockwise about the first revolution axis AX5which exists within the surface of the substrate W, thereby graduallyincreasing the contact surface between the substrate W and the sheetfilm F toward the right-hand side. When the tilt of the first plate 54is completely corrected and the first plate 54 becomes parallel to thesecond plate 55, the substrate W and the sheet film F are pushed againsteach other at the equal pressure in the entire surface.

As the load motor 592 continues applying the load and the load sensor595 senses out a predetermined load, the control unit 9 controls theload motor 592 so that the load motor 592 will continue applying theload for a certain period of time. The heating of the substrate W andthe sheet film F to the predetermined temperature continues also duringthis.

After the series of loading operations described above, the control unit9 sends a signal to the load motor 592 such that there will be zeroloading. At this stage, the control unit 9 also controls such that thevacuum evacuation will be stopped.

Upon completion of the transfer of the SOG film 121 onto the substrate Win the transfer unit 5 as described above, the substrate W is alreadyone integrated unit with the sheet film F with the SOG film (thin film)inserted between the substrate W and the sheet film F. And the substrateW is sucked and accordingly held as it is one integrated unit at thesuction holes 246 through 248 of the hand-for-substrate 24 which comesinto the transfer unit 5. In short, utilizing the lower side holdingmechanism of the hand-for-substrate 24, a tightly adhered object (whichis denoted at the reference symbol M in FIG. 15 which will be describedlater, and which is the substrate W and the sheet film F tightlyadhering to each other through the SOG film 121) is sucked andaccordingly held. The hand-for-substrate 24 transports the tightlyadhered object, as it is sucked and accordingly held, from the chamber511 to the peeling unit 6.

G. Peeling Unit 6

FIG. 15 is a drawing which shows the peeling unit which is disposed tothe thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1. The peeling unit 6comprises: a processing container 61 whose inside is a processingchamber 611; a suction plate 62 which is disposed below the processingchamber 611 and vacuum-sucks the sheet film F of the tightly adheredobject M created in the transfer unit 5 described above; and a substratesuction body 63 which is disposed above the suction plate 62, capable ofsucking the substrate W of the tightly adhered object M which is placedon the suction plate 62, and revolves about an axis AX7 which is alongthe X-direction. Denoted at 111 in FIG. 15 are electrodeinterconnections which are formed in the thin film bearing surface 112of the substrate W.

A revolving mechanism 64 using a rotary-type air cylinder or the like isconnected with the substrate suction body 63, for the purpose ofrevolving the substrate suction body 63 about the axis AX7. In addition,an elevating mechanism 65 is disposed to the substrate suction body 63.

The elevating mechanism 65 comprises pins 67 which are moved forward andbackward by driving members 66 such as air cylinders relative to thecontact surface with the substrate W within the substrate suction body63. When the substrate suction body 63 revolves and directs thesubstrate W toward above, the pins 67 are moved upward, thereby makingit possible to move the substrate W to above the substrate suction body63.

An ionizer not shown is disposed to the processing chamber 611 of theprocessing container 61, so that it is possible to develop an ozone (O₃)atmosphere inside the processing chamber 611.

Operations of the peeling unit 6 having such a structure described abovewill now be described. The substrate W to which the sheet film F isbonded by the transfer unit 5 with the SOG film 121 inserted between thesubstrate W and the sheet film F, namely, the tightly adhered object Mis loaded into the processing chamber 611 of the peeling unit 6, whilesucked and accordingly held by the hand-for-substrate 24 of the centerrobot 2. At this stage, the substrate suction body 63 has alreadyretracted to above. After placing the tightly adhered object M on thesuction plate 62 in such a manner that the sheet film F contacts thesuction plate 62, the hand-for-substrate 24 retracts outside theprocessing container 61.

While the suction plate 62 sucks the sheet film F, the substrate suctionbody 63 moves downward and sucks the substrate W at the back surface(no-thin-film surface) of the substrate W. Meanwhile, the processingcontainer 61 is closed air tight and the ionizer is activated, and theprocessing chamber 611 is accordingly filled with an ozone atmosphere.With the sheet film F sucked in this manner, a solvent contained in theSOG film 121 is discharged through the sheet film F, so that the SOGfilm 121 is dried. This drying process facilitates drying and hencepeeling of the SOG film 121 more at the interface between the sheet filmF and the SOG film 121 than at the interface between the substrate W andthe SOG film 121. When the substrate suction body 63 moves upward aftera predetermined period of time, peeling occurs at the interface betweenthe sheet film F and the SOG film 121 and the SOG film 121 isconsequently transferred onto the substrate W from the sheet film F.

Next, the substrate suction body 63 which has moved to above is revolvedby the revolving mechanism 64 about the axis AX7 and stops as the thinfilm bearing surface 112 of the substrate W gets directed upward andassumes a horizontal posture, that is enters a face-up condition.Following this, the substrate suction body 63 releases suction of thesubstrate W and the elevating mechanism 65 then moves the substrate W toabove. In short, as the driving members 66 raise the pins 67, thesubstrate W is raised off from the surface of contact with the substratesuction body 63.

The hand-for-substrate 24 transports thus raised substrate W to the nextprocessing unit, namely, the reversing unit 8, and the substratetransporting robot 12 of the indexer ID houses the substrate W into thesubstrate cassette 11.

H. Reversing Unit 8

FIGS. 16A and 16B are drawings which show the reversing unit which isdisposed to the thin film forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1, of whichFIG. 16A is a plan view showing the reversing unit from above and FIG.16B is a cross sectional view of FIG. 16A taken along the D-D line. Thereversing unit 8 comprises paired substrate chucks 81 and 81 whichreceive and transfer the substrate W from and to the hand-for-substrate24 of the center robot 2. The substrate chucks 81 and 81 are arranged toface yet with a distance with each other. Each substrate chuck 81 isdisposed to a front edge portion of a rod 83 of a rotary cylinder 82,moves in the X-direction as the rod 83 moves in the X-direction androtates 180 degrees about the rod 83 as the rod 83 rotates.

Hence, as the substrate transporting robot 12 of the indexer IDtransports the yet-to-be-processed substrate W between the substratechucks 81 and 81 which are away from each other, the two rods 83 extendand the paired substrate chucks 81 and 81 firmly hold the substrate W asshown in FIGS. 16A and 16B, following which the substrate transportingrobot 12 retracts. The both rods 83 then rotate 180 degrees. As aresult, the substrate W transported in the face-up condition, i.e., acondition that the electrode interconnections 111 formed in the thinfilm bearing surface 112 are directed to above, is reversed and enters aface-down condition.

When the substrate W already bearing the thin film is transported by thecenter robot 2 to the reversing unit 8 from the peeling unit 6 whilemechanically held in the face-up condition by the hand-for-substrate 24,the both rods 83 extend and the paired substrate chucks 81 and 81 firmlyhold the substrate W, and the substrate is handed over to the substratetransporting robot 12 without getting reversed.

I. Operations

FIG. 17 is a drawing which shows overall operations of the thin filmforming apparatus having such a structure described above. In FIG. 17,the solid line arrows denote the order in which the substrate W istransported, the dotted line arrows denote the order in which the sheetfilm F is transported, and the white arrow denotes transportation of thetightly adhered object M. In this thin film forming apparatus, thesubstrate W which seats the electrode interconnections 111 on thesurface of the substrate W is housed in the substrate cassette 11, whilethe sheet film F is housed in the film cassette 71. The hand-for-film 25transports the top-most sheet film F of the film cassette 71 to thecoating unit 3, and the SOG film 121 is applied upon the surface of thesheet film F (Step S1: Coating). In the event that the top-most one inthe film cassette 71 is the separating sheet SH, the top-most separatingsheet SH is removed in accordance with the sequence of operationsdescribed above under the section “C. Film Supplying Unit (FilmSupplier) 7 and Film Cassette 71” and the sheet film F is positioned inthe top-most portion, following which the sheet film F is transported tothe coating unit 3 and the coating unit 3 performs the coating processas described above.

Parallel to the unloading of the sheet film F and the coating process,in the indexer ID, the substrate transporting robot 12 takes out thesubstrate W which is housed in the substrate cassette 11 whilemaintaining the substrate W in the face-up condition, and transports thesubstrate W to the reversing unit 8. The reversing unit 8 then reversesthe substrate W into the face-down condition (Step S2: Reversing). Thesubstrate supporting blocks 245 of the hand-for-substrate 24 receivesthe substrate W from the reversing unit 8, and the substrate W istransported to the transfer unit 5 and mounted to the bottom surface ofthe first plate 54 of the transfer unit 5. In this manner, the upperside holding mechanism of the hand-for-substrate 24 holds the substrateW and transports the substrate W from the reversing unit 8 to thetransfer unit 5 in this embodiment.

Meanwhile, as the coating process completes, the hand-for-film 25transports the sheet film F from the coating unit 3 to the drying unit4, and the SOG film 121 on the sheet film F is dried in the drying unit4 (Step S3: Drying). When the drying process is not necessary, thehand-for-film 25 transports the sheet film F from the coating unit 3directly to the transfer unit 5 and the sheet film F is mounted on thesecond plate 55.

As the substrate W and the sheet film F are set to the first and thesecond plates 54 and 55 respectively in the transfer unit 5, the SOGfilm 121 is transferred onto the substrate W in accordance with thesequence of operations described above under the section “F. TransferUnit 5” (Step S4: Transfer).

Next, the hand-for-substrate 24 enters the transfer unit 5, and afterthe substrate W is sucked and accordingly held on the bottom surfaceside of the hand main body 243, the tightly adhered object M as it issucked in this manner is transported to the peeling unit 6. Thus, thelower side holding mechanism of the hand-for-substrate 24 is used fortransportation of the tightly adhered object M from the transfer unit 5to the peeling unit 6.

The sheet film F alone is selectively peeled off from the tightlyadhered object M thus transported to the peeling unit 6 (Step S5:Peeling). This generates the substrate W which seats only the SOG film121 on the thin film bearing surface 112. This substrate W, while heldin the face-up condition by the substrate supporting blocks 245 of thehand-for-substrate 24, is transported to the reversing unit 8. In otherwords, transportation of the substrate W is carried out using the upperside holding mechanism of the hand-for-substrate 24. Meanwhile, thesheet film F thus peeled off is discarded.

In the indexer ID, the substrate W now bearing the thin film andreturned to the reversing unit 8 is housed by the substrate transportingrobot 12 in the substrate cassette 11.

J. Functions and Effects

As described above, this embodiment realizes the following functions andeffects.

(1) In the thin film forming apparatus having such a structure describedabove, in the process part PP, the thin film is formed on the substrateW utilizing the sheet film F while the center robot 2 which functions as“transporting means” of the present invention transports the sheet filmF and/or the substrate W between the coating unit (coating means) 3, thedrying unit (drying means) 4, the transfer unit (transfer means) 5 andthe peeling unit (peeling means) 6. Hence, it is possible to form thethin film using the sheet film F without involving an operator. Further,since the film supplying unit (film supplying means/film supplier) 7 isdisposed to the process part PP and the sheet film F is supplieddirectly to the process part PP, it is possible to enhance theefficiency of transporting the sheet films F and improve the throughputof the apparatus.

(2) The center robot 2 is fixed approximately in the central portion ofthe process part PP. The coating unit (coating means) 3, the drying unit(drying means) 4, the transfer unit (transfer means) 5, the peeling unit(peeling means) 6, the film supplying unit (film supplying means/filmsupplier) 7 and the reversing unit 8 are arranged around the centerrobot 2. The hand-for-substrate 24 and the hand-for-film 25 are allowedto directly access the respective units 3 through 8. Hence, it is notnecessary to install a transportation path for the center robot 2, whichis advantageous to size reduction of the apparatus.

(3) The center robot 2 comprises the upper side holding mechanism andthe lower side holding mechanism and is therefore capable oftransporting the substrate W while holding the substrate W in the twoholding conditions. The holding condition is switched depending on thestate of the substrate W in the embodiment described above. Hence, thecenter robot 2 is adaptable to the state of the substrate W and capableof efficiently transporting the substrates.

(4) The transfer means which transfers the SOG film 121 on the sheetfilm F onto the thin film bearing surface 112 may be various types ofapparatuses proposed according to conventional techniques, such as theapparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.2001-135634, instead of using the transfer unit 5 according to theembodiment described above. However, in this embodiment, the tiltcorrection mechanism 58 is the transfer unit 5, as described earlier indetail under the section “E Transfer Unit 5,” in which the first plate54 can be tilted with respect to the vertical direction Z by axialrevolutions about the two revolution axes AX5 and AX6. Hence, it ispossible to dispose the drying unit 4 and the transfer unit 5 one atopthe other as shown in FIG. 1 and therefore to reduce the area size forinstallation of the thin film forming apparatus, namely, the footprint.The reason is as described below. That is, a conventional approach forpressing the substrate W on the entire surface of the substrate Wagainst the sheet film F with a uniform pressure is to incorporate, in atransfer unit, the tilt correction mechanism described in the officialgazette mentioned above for example, namely, a mechanism which revolvesa first plate along spherical surfaces of a convex plate and a concaveplates for correction of tilt. However, this conventional approach has aproblem that the size of the mechanism is large in the verticaldirection Z, because of which it is practically difficult to stack thetransfer unit and the drying means one atop the other. On the contrary,as for the transfer unit according to this embodiment, the height of thetransfer unit 5 is remarkably lower than the conventional transfer unit,which makes it possible to overlap the drying unit 4 and the transferunit 5 in the vertical direction and accordingly reduce the footprint.

(5) Since the sheet films F as they are with the separating sheets SHinserted between the sheet films F are housed in the film cassette 71,it is possible to prevent the sheet films from adhering air-tight toeach other and use the respective sheet films F separately without fail.As the separating sheet SH is located at the very top in the filmcassette 71, it is possible to effectively prevent contamination of thesheet film F. Further, since the separating sheet removing mechanism 74is disposed and the separating sheet SH at the very top is removed inthis embodiment, it is possible to position the sheet film F at the verytop in the film cassette 71 and easily take out the sheet film from thefilm cassette 71. This in turn makes it possible to supply the sheetfilms F in accordance with the necessity without involving an operatorand thus efficiently supply the sheet films F. The sheet film F is anobject made of a resin and shaped as a thin plate or thin film. Theseparating sheet SH is an object shaped as a thin plate or thin filmwhich is placed between the sheet films F for the purpose of protectingthe sheet films F and suppressing electrification. A preferable materialis a clean paper considering suppression of electrification, dust, etc.,but other materials such as papers and resins may be used.

(6) Since the film cassettes 71 are freely attachable to and detachablefrom the thin film forming apparatus, as the film cassettes 71 housingthe sheet films F in advance are prepared and mounted to the apparatusin accordance with a necessity, it is possible to supply the sheet filmsF. This realizes even more efficient supplying of the sheet films F.

(7) With the inner space 254 created inside the hand-for-film 25 under anegative pressure using the blower, the hand-for-film 25 sucks andaccordingly holds the sheet film F, that is, an exhaust flow rate isincreased and a negative pressure is applied upon the suction holes.Hence, even if there is a leakage locally in the exhaust path from thesuction holes 246 through 248 to the blower, it is possible to develop asufficient negative pressure to suck and accordingly hold the sheet filmF although the negative pressure decreases in an amount equivalent tothe leakage. It is thus possible to transport the sheet films F withexcellent stability, and therefore, to efficiently transport the sheetfilms.

K. Others

The present invention is not limited to the preferred embodimentdescribed above but may be modified to the extent not deviating from theintention of the invention. For instance, although the preferredembodiment above requires that the respective units 3 through 8 areradially arranged about the center robot 2 as shown in FIG. 1, thearrangement of the center robot 2 and the respective units 3 through 8is not limited to this. Instead, the respective units 3 through 8 may bearranged on the both sides or one side to a predetermined transportationpath for the center robot 2 which is allowed to freely move along thetransportation path.

In addition, while the preferred embodiment above uses the coating unit3 for the coating process, the drying unit 4 for the drying process, thetransfer unit 5 for the transfer process and the peeling unit 6 for thepeeling process as units which processes the sheet films F, in additionto these units, other processing unit, such as a hydrophilic processunit which subjects the sheet films F to a hydrophilic surfacetreatment, may be further disposed or some of these units may bedeleted. Thus, the present invention is applicable to thin film formingapparatuses in general which comprise a unit which handles the sheetfilms F.

Further, although the transfer unit 5 which corresponds to the transfermeans and the peeling unit 6 which corresponds to the peeling means areseparate units from each other according to the preferred embodimentdescribed above, the present invention may be applied to thin filmforming apparatuses comprising a unit which serves both as the transfermeans and the peeling means instead of using these units 5 and 6.

Still further, although the drying unit 4 is stacked above the transferunit 5 along the vertical direction Z in the preferred embodimentdescribed above, the drying unit 4 may be stacked above other processingunit or arranged stand alone. In the event that the drying unit 4 isarranged stand alone, a plurality of drying unit 4 may all be stackedup. The drying unit 4 may be omitted of course, if the drying process isnot necessary.

The center robot 2 is equipped with the two holding conditions,characterized in transporting the substrate W while switching theholding condition in accordance with the substrate W and transportingthe two substrates W at the same time, and thus, corresponds to atransport mechanism of the present invention. While the center robot 2is applied to a thin film forming apparatus so as to make use of such acharacteristic in the preferred embodiment described above, thetransport mechanism of the present invention may be applied toapparatuses in general which involves transportation of substrates. Thisrealizes the effect (3) described above, i.e., an effect that thetransport mechanism is adaptable to the state of the substrate W andcapable of efficiently transporting substrates.

In addition, the present invention is suitable to processing in which athin film is joined under pressure without creating a space in a concaveportion of a substrate which comprises concave and convex patterns and asurface of the thin film is made planar. An examples is a situation thatan SOD (Spin-on-Dielectric) film, an SOG film or the like is formed asan inter-layer insulation film on a substrate which comprises aninterconnection pattern of metal or the like, or a situation that aconductive thin film is buried in a substrate which comprises a hole,such as a contact hole, a groove-shaped element, etc.

Further, the present invention is applicable to generation of a thinfilm on a substrate, such as a glass substrate for semiconductor wafer,liquid crystal panel or the like, a glass substrate for photomask, aglass substrate for plasma display and a substrate for optical disk, andfabrication of an IC card, a solar battery device, etc.

Although the invention has been described with reference to specificembodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limitingsense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiment, as well asother embodiments of the present invention, will become apparent topersons skilled in the art upon reference to the description of theinvention. It is therefore contemplated that the appended claims willcover any such modifications or embodiments as fall within the truescope of the invention.

1-7. (canceled)
 8. A film supplier which supplies sheet films within athin film forming apparatus which forms thin films on substrates usingsaid sheet films, comprising: a film cassette in which said sheet filmsare housed in such a manner that a separating sheet is inserted betweensaid sheet films; and separating sheet removing means which removes saidseparating sheet located at the very top in said film cassette out fromsaid film cassette, to thereby position said sheet film at the very topin said film cassette.
 9. The film supplier of claim 8, furthercomprising a protection cover which is disposed to said film cassette insuch a manner that said protection cover can be freely opened andclosed, and cover open/close means which opens and closes saidprotection cover.
 10. The film supplier of claim 8, further comprisingseparating sheet collecting means which collects said separating sheetsremoved from said film cassette.
 11. A film cassette which houses asheet film which is used in a thin film forming apparatus which forms athin film on a substrate, comprising: a cassette main body which iscapable of housing a plurality of sheet films in such a manner that aseparating sheet is inserted between said sheet films; and a positioningmember which fits with peripheral portions of said sheet films and saidseparating sheet housed in said cassette main body to thereby positionsaid sheet films and said separating sheet relative to said cassettemain body.
 12. The film cassette of claim 11, further comprising aprotection cover, being disposed to said cassette main body in such amanner that said protection cover can be freely opened and closed,covers said sheet films and said separating sheet housed in saidcassette main body from above when closed and accordingly protects saidsheet films and said separating sheet, but when opened permits to unloadsaid sheet films and said separating sheet housed in said cassette mainbody from above.
 13. The film cassette of claim 11, which is freelyattachable to and detachable from said thin film forming apparatus. 14.A transport mechanism which transports a sheet film which is used in athin film forming apparatus which forms a thin film using said sheetfilm, comprising; a hand-for-film which comprises a suction hole in anabutting area where said hand-for-film abuts on said sheet film; ablower which is linked to said suction hole via an inner space createdinside said hand-for-film and which evacuates the inside of said innerspace so that said hand-for-film applies suction to and accordinglyholds said sheet film; and a driver-for-film which moves saidhand-for-film in a condition wherein said blower causes saidhand-for-film to apply suction to and accordingly hold said sheet film,to thereby transport said sheet film.
 15. The transport mechanism ofclaim 14, wherein in the event that a thin film is formed in a centralportion of a surface of said sheet film and a surface peripheral portionof said sheet film is exposed, said transport mechanism applies suctionto and accordingly holds with the abutting area of said hand-for-filmabutting on said surface peripheral portion.
 16. A transport mechanismwhich transports a substrate while holding said substrate, comprising: ahand main body; an upper side holding mechanism which holds saidsubstrate on the top surface side of said hand main body; a lower sideholding mechanism which holds said substrate on the bottom surface sideof said hand main body; and a driver-for-substrate which moves said handmain body so as to transport said substrate.
 17. The transport mechanismof claim 16, wherein said hand main body includes a suction hole whichis formed on the bottom surface side of said hand main body, and whereinsaid lower side holding mechanism applies suction to and accordinglyholds said substrate via said suction hole.
 18. The transport mechanismof claim 16, wherein said upper side holding mechanism supports saidsubstrate mechanically via a substrate supporting block which isdisposed on the top surface side of said hand main body.
 19. A method oftransporting a substrate via a transport mechanism which comprises ahand main body, said method comprising: a first transportation mode, inwhich a substrate is transported while held on the top surface side ofsaid hand main body; and a second transportation mode, said substrate istransported while held on the bottom surface side of said hand mainbody, wherein said substrate is transported in either one of said firsttransportation mode and said second transportation mode in accordancewith the state of said substrate.
 20. The transportation method of claim19, wherein said substrate is transported within a thin film formingapparatus in which after a thin film formed in a surface of a sheet filmis transferred onto a thin film bearing surface of said substrate bytransfer means and said sheet film and said substrate are joined witheach other into a tightly adhered object with said thin film insertedbetween said sheet film and said substrate, peeling means peels off saidsheet film from said tightly adhered object, and wherein said tightlyadhered object is transported to said peeling means from said transfermeans in said second transportation mode, while said substrate bearingsaid thin film is unloaded from said peeling means in said firsttransportation mode.